Pelagic BRUVS Dataset

Overview

The Pelagic Baited Remote Underwater Video (pBRUV) protocol is used to sample large, mobile fishes and predators in open water environments. Each deployment consists of a string of five baited stereo-camera rigs, connected and deployed simultaneously as a single sampling unit.

Data are stored in two linked tables:

  • pbruv.stations — Metadata for each deployment (e.g., location, depth, bait, camera models)
  • pbruv.maxn_by_taxa — Summary of fish observations by station and species, including MaxN and ecological traits

Each record in pbruv.stations represents one deployment (i.e., one string of five rigs), and all observations are linked via ps_station_id. Fish identities are standardized using accepted_aphia_id, enabling linkage to taxonomy.fish.


Tables


Stations (pbruv.stations)

This table contains metadata for each pelagic BRUVS (pBRUVS) deployment. Each row represents a single deployment event (“string”) composed of a fixed array of ~5 baited camera rigs, suspended in the water column and deployed simultaneously. Unlike SBRUVS, which rest on the seafloor, pelagic BRUVS are midwater deployments designed to sample open-ocean and upper reef-associated fish assemblages. Each rig in a string operates independently but is deployed as part of a coordinated set at a common location and time.

The station is the unit of deployment and spatial reference. Rig-level data (e.g., camera, bait, depth) are recorded in pbruv.rigs, and fish observations are stored in pbruv.maxn_by_rig.

Table 1: Schema for pbruv.stations: metadata for each pelagic BRUVS deployment string (site)
Field Type Required Description
ps_station_id STRING true Unique station ID (e.g., COL_2023_pbruv_001).
exp_id STRING true Expedition ID (ISO3_YEAR).
method STRING true Field method used (pbruv).
uwa_string_id STRING false External site ID used by the University of Western Australia (if applicable).
region STRING true Region name (e.g., Chocó, Tuamotu).
subregion STRING true Subregion (e.g., gulf, reef complex).
locality STRING false Local named feature (e.g., bay, island).
latitude FLOAT true Latitude of string centroid (decimal degrees).
longitude FLOAT true Longitude of string centroid (decimal degrees).
date DATE true Date of deployment (ISO 8601 format).
time TIME true Local time of deployment (24-hour format).
n_rigs INTEGER true Number of rigs deployed in the string (typically 5).
drift_m FLOAT false Mean horizontal drift distance (m) across rigs.
drift_hrs FLOAT false Mean soak time (hours).
bait_type STRING true Bait type used across rigs (e.g., sardines, mackerel).
lead STRING true Name of the lead scientist or team lead.
notes STRING false Optional comments or deployment notes.

Rigs (pbruv.rigs)

This table contains rig-level metadata for pelagic BRUV deployments. Each row corresponds to a single camera rig within a five-rig string. It captures the spatial position, video details, soak time, and rig-specific conditions. This granularity supports rig-level analysis while enabling later aggregation at the station level (ps_station_id).

Each rig is uniquely identified by ps_rig_id and linked to its parent station via ps_station_id.

Table 2: Schema for pbruv.rigs: metadata for individual camera rigs within each string
Field Type Required Description
ps_rig_id STRING true Unique rig ID (e.g., COL_2023_pbruv_001_r1).
ps_station_id STRING true Foreign key to pbruv.stations.
rig_number INTEGER true Rig number in the string (1–5).
lat_deploy FLOAT true Latitude at deployment (decimal degrees).
lon_deploy FLOAT true Longitude at deployment (decimal degrees).
lat_recover FLOAT true Latitude at recovery (decimal degrees).
lon_recover FLOAT true Longitude at recovery (decimal degrees).
time_deploy DATETIME true Timestamp of rig deployment (ISO 8601).
time_recover DATETIME true Timestamp of rig recovery (ISO 8601).
depth_m FLOAT true Deployment depth (m).
left_cam STRING true Left camera model or ID.
right_cam STRING true Right camera model or ID.
notes STRING false Optional comments or QA notes for this rig.

MaxN (pbruv.maxn_by_taxa)

The pbruv.maxn_by_taxa table stores rig-level summaries of fish observations from pelagic BRUVS deployments. Each row represents the maximum number of individuals (maxn) observed for a given taxon on a single rig. When available, length estimates are included as optional fields to support size-based analysis of pelagic fish communities.

Species identities are standardized via accepted_aphia_id, with traits such as family and trophic_group joined from the central species reference (taxonomy.fish).

Table 3: Schema for pbruv.maxn_by_taxa: rig-level summaries of MaxN and ecological traits
Field Type Required Description
ps_station_id STRING true Unique station ID (exp_id_method_###).
rig_id STRING true Identifier for the rig within the string (e.g., r101, r102).
accepted_name STRING true Scientific name (Genus species) of the observed taxon.
accepted_aphia_id INTEGER true WoRMS AphiaID — foreign key to taxonomy.fish.
family STRING true Family of the taxon.
trophic_group STRING true Trophic group classification (e.g., planktivore, top-predator).
maxn INTEGER true Maximum number of individuals observed simultaneously on video (MaxN).
avg_length_cm FLOAT false Mean estimated total length (cm), if length data are available.
min_length_cm FLOAT false Minimum observed length (cm).
max_length_cm FLOAT false Maximum observed length (cm).
notes STRING false Optional comments or QA notes.